as small as a world and as large as alone

11:33am February 12, 2014

socimages:

Best of 2013! How do physicians and non-physicians want to die?

Differently.

“When you ask people how they’d like to die, most will say that they want to die quickly, painlessly, and peacefully… preferably in their sleep.

But, if you ask them whether they would want various types of interventions, were they on the cusp of death and already living a low-quality of life, they typically say ‘yes,’ ‘yes,’ and ‘can I have some more please.’  Blood transfusions, feeding tubes, invasive testing, chemotherapy, dialysis, ventilation, and chest pumping CPR. Most people say ‘yes.’

But not physicians.  Doctors, it turns out, overwhelmingly say ‘no.’”

Read the fascinating and terrifying reasons why at Sociological Images.

Um?  As someone who would’ve died without a feeding tube, and knows a lot of vent users?  It’s not medical illiteracy on my part.  It’s partly the fact that doctors routinely rate the quality of life of disabled people (people who have to use such equipment long-term) lower than disabled people do.  They may administer these treatments, and think that makes them experts on our lives, but in reality, they aren’t.  

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